I had planned to post this monthly wrap-up of things I jot down on Facebook on the last day of June. As it turned out, that was immediately after The Unforgettable Storm; and our lack of electricity and internet connection meant that I wasn't able to get this finished and posted on that day. Then, in the craziness of that next week, this got pushed to the back of my mind. No matter. It's here now. :)
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June 1 - "Noah did everything just as God commanded him." (Genesis 6:22) Wow, what obedience! I long for this to be said about me, but I'm all too aware of how far I fall short. I'm sure the secret of Noah's obedience is found in verse 9, "...he walked with God." May my focus today be on walking with God, no matter how many loads of laundry I do--or do not--get done or whether my floors are any cleaner at the end of the day than they are right now! :)
June 1 - Tobin, a moment ago, to me: "I'm a little tired of coloring this Captain America page." After a pause, he continued: "I bet you're a little tired of fixing supper and waiting for Daddy." For a four-year-old, I'd say that's a pretty good amount of empathy! :)
June 2 - Last Friday evening (early Saturday morning, actually), I heard a horse and buggy go by at 1:17 AM. Last night (well, early this morning, to be exact), I heard one at 4:54 AM. What in the world are these Old Order Mennonites up to?? I just might have to be neighborly (AKA nosy) and ask my Old Order Mennonite neighbor! ;-)
June 4 - Today's best love expression: David, sweetly, to Moriah: "You're as precious as a pearl." A pause, and then, "You're as precious as a HUNDRED pearls!" :)
June 4 - Today's best nature observation: Shav, while looking out the window: "The leaves match the grass!" Although in his dialect, it sounded more like, "Da weaves match da gwass!" :)
June 4 - Found: one black cape hanging over the bedpost on Jeff's side of the bed. This just goes to show: he really IS a superhero! ;-) (A possible alternative explanation is that he has a lot of sons who have not yet mastered the art of putting their stuff away when they're done with it. But nah, that's probably not it. I'll go with the superhero explanation.) ;-)
June 5 - I got to do my favorite garden-related job this evening: shelling peas. I LOVE SHELLING PEAS! At the end of the night, the reward was nice: putting 4 pints of peas in the freezer. You might be a country girl if you have WAY more fun preserving food for winter than you have going shopping for a new pair of shoes. ;-)
June 7 - On this day 15 years ago, I said "I do" to my beloved Jeff. He swept me off my feet and carried me along through the many adventures we've had during the past 15 years. I haven't had a single day of regret about marrying him, and I love him and respect him more and more as the years go by. He is truly one of God's very best gifts to me! :)
June 10 - We had a wonderful time away this weekend at the Home Educators Association of Virginia (HEAV) convention in Richmond. Besides building great memories with our children (we took everyone along this year), I also gleaned lots of great insights and encouragement. After we got home this afternoon, the first item on my agenda was a nap. :) Then unpacking the Big White Van, then shelling some peas (the garden didn't stop growing just because we were gone for a few days!), then enjoying a visit out on the lawn with our neighbors. Like I always think after a trip - it's good to go, and it's GOOD to come home! :)
June 11 - Lightning bugs dancing over cornfields = one of the pleasures of summer nights in the country! :)
June 12 - A new Tobin mispronunciation: "crassable." And what does that mean? "Casserole," of course! I surely can't help but smile when I hear his distinctive Tobin-talk. ;-)
June 13 - Ten years ago at this time, I was in the hospital, laboring to bring forth my firstborn. My Josiah! How proud I am of him! Today I'm giving thanks for the 10th birthday of the wonderful child who gave me my heart's desire: he made me a mother.
June 14 - At Massanutten Waterpark today, I discovered that there's a much richer joy than being unencumbered and free to ride on the waterslides as many times as one could wish for and to float down Lazy River endlessly, and that is this: to hold one's sleeping baby and to watch one's other children laugh and play and have a grand ol' time. THAT is true fulfillment. THAT brings genuine contentment. THAT is pure sweetness. And I got to experience it today. Blessed beyond measure am I. Grateful beyond words is how I always hope to stay.
June 14 - One of the sweetest moments at the waterpark yesterday occurred when Jeff and Josiah returned from their latest adventure on big water slides or whatever they were doing, and David wasn't with them. He had gone to the warm pool. Now for him to go to it by himself shows how much he LOVES the warm pool, because David is such a people person that he almost always chooses to do something with other people, rather than be by himself. But he was cold, I guess, and wanted to warm up. I wasn't really worried about him; but I decided to walk, with Moriah in my arms, over to the warm pool and check on him. He didn't notice me until I had actually gotten into the pool and was walking towards him; but when he saw me, his eyes lit up like a 1,000-watt bulb, and he exclaimed, "You came here to be with ME???" His gorgeous, joyful smile melted my heart. How I love that boy!
June 16 - Tonight I'm even more grateful than usual that my children are blessed with such an incredible daddy...a daddy who showers affection on them and says "no" to other opportunities that would take him away from home so that he can be with them...a daddy who cares for them physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually...a daddy who has so much fun with his kids! Happy Father's Day, Jeff! :)
June 18 - "Thanks so much for the cute outfit, Barbara! I like it a whole bunch, and my mommy tells me I look beautiful in it. (But you know how she is: she ALWAYS thinks I'm beautiful!) I'm so glad you're my neighbor! Love, Moriah :)"
June 19 - You can't accuse him of not being ambitious. Josiah told me this morning that his goal is to get to a 2100 rating in chess. Considering that his current rating is somewhere in the 800s, he's got a ways to go; but having a goal is the first step. No matter what, I'll be cheering him on all the way! :) And by the way, all his chess smarts and ambition come from his daddy. ;-)
June 20 - Last night wasn't the first time Moriah has slept through the night, but it was the first time she went NINE hours straight. (Other times she's slept seven or eight hours.) Hooray for Moriah! Hooray for God's good gift of refreshing sleep! :)
June 20 - "She looks like you," the friendly lady in the produce section said to me this afternoon as I grocery shopped with Josiah, David, and Moriah. I actually don't get that comment very often. Maybe it's because when I go out with all five children, people are too busy mentioning how full my hands are to notice anything else! Regardless, I felt quite pleased to be told that the itty bitty bundle of sweet darling cuteness riding in my grocery cart looked like me. :)
June 22 - Several times this morning, I heard David calling Moriah a name that sounded to my ears like "Mer." When I questioned him about it, he said, "I gave her that nickname because she's more precious than myrrh!"
June 22 - Our supper tonight was inspired by what we have ready to eat in the garden. For example, we have some cabbage that needs to be used up, so I did a search for a cabbage soup recipe and came across this one which was perfect because it's a Weight Watchers 0 Point food! And it actually tasted good, too. ;-) Some of that health benefit was erased, however, by this absolutely scrumptious salad dressing I made. We have lettuce in the garden that we need to use, so it was a no-brainer to make a salad. But the dressing - well, it's not exactly health food. But oh, so yummy!!! :) For the dressing, I used fresh basil from the garden. Altogether, I used four garden items for our meal: cabbage, basil, and oregano for the soup, and lettuce and more basil for the salad. This makes me happy. :)
June 25 - Tobin and Shav had their first Musikgarten class this morning (both Josiah and David had the opportunity to take some Musikgarten classes when they were younger which was definitely a great experience for them, and I'm really happy that now Tobin and Shav are having a turn to do it), and it was good. I rearranged the living room furniture this afternoon, and it was good. Josiah, David, and Tobin went to VBS tonight (another first for Tobin), and it was good. I read my Bible tonight, and it was VERY good. Genesis 15:13 stood out to me, where God says to Abraham, "Know for certain..." What has God told me that I need to be reminded to KNOW FOR CERTAIN? What word has He spoken to you that you need to cling to and KNOW FOR CERTAIN?
June 26 - This morning was the first morning that I walked into Moriah's room to get her out of her crib and was greeted by a smiling girl. When she saw me, she got a huge grin on her face. Not a bad way to start the day. Not a bad way at all! ;-)
Lightning bugs over a cornfield sounds just beautiful. I hope you get power back soon.
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